Nepali PM calls up Modi over demonetisation

Kathmandu, Nov 15: Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda" has telephoned his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to seek exchange facility for demonetised Indian currency in circulation in his country, the Prime Minister's Office said.

During a five-minute conversation on Monday night, Prachanda congratulated Modi on his move to crack down on black money and corruption, Xinhua news agency quoted an official statement as saying.

Modi has assured Prachanda that he would address the problem faced by Nepal where Indian currency is widely used.

Prachanda took personal initiative to address the problem of exchanging demonetised currency notes after efforts by the state-run central bank -- Nepal Rastra Bank -- failed to resolve the problem.

The Nepali central bank had written to the Reserve Bank of India last week regarding the 500 and 1,000 rupee notes in circulation in Nepal.

The demonetisation move is posing a challenge to the management of Indian currency worth billions possessed by Nepali nationals.

Hundreds of thousands of Nepali nationals in India and those residing and working in various border regions between the two countries have also been hugely affected by the Indian move.